Seeking advice on quiet gaming HTPC built
Posted: Thu Jan 24, 2013 11:55 am
My goal is to build a HTPC that can handle the current generation of PC games at decent settings, 1080p at 2D, and 720p at 3D. This will go with a Panasonic 1080p plasma. It will go on a shelf with about ten inches of vertical space.
Case:
I'm thinking of a Silverstone Grandia GD08B. It seems like I will need an ATX case to have enough room for a decent GPU, but it can't be a tower, because that wouldn't fit on the shelf. The Grandia GD08B is the nicest looking of the options. Will the included fans be enough?
PSU:
I've been recommended the Seasonic G 380, or the SSR-450RM. I'm leaning towards the SSR-450RM for the modular cables for reduced clutter.
CPU:
Keeping it simple, Intel i3-3220 Ivy Bridge. The benchmarks I've seen tell me that games won't benefit much from an upgrade to an i5. But what about the cooler? Is there any chance of the stock cooler being good enough? If I gave it a test go, and then decided later it was too loud, would replacing it later be a horrible nuisance?
GPU:
Geforce GTX 650 Ti. nVidia because it's the industry standard for 3D gaming, and is TV compatible with the 3DTV Play software. Anything better than the 650 Ti would cost disproportionately more. Any reason not to go with 2GB over 1GB? The price difference isn't huge. Any manufacturers I should favor?
Motherboard:
Looking at the Gigabyte GA-H77N. The H77 chipset seems adequate, and the integrated wifi and Bluetooth will be nice.
Memory:
G.SKILL Ripjaws DDR3 1600 8GB (2). Didn't put much thought into this, just went with what gets good ratings at Newegg.
SSD:
Intel 330, 120GB. The OS and the occasional PC game will go on it.
HDD:
No clue. 500GB would be plenty of space, but aside from that, I don't know what other properties I should be looking for in a secondary HDD.
ODD:
Considering skipping this. I have a PS3 already. Adding a Blu-Ray drive would be really nice and nearly eliminate the need for my PS3, but if I can get superior airflow in the HTPC without one, then maybe it would be better to keep using the PS3 for that.
OS:
Windows 7 Home Premium. Not ready to be an early adopter of Windows 8.
Case:
I'm thinking of a Silverstone Grandia GD08B. It seems like I will need an ATX case to have enough room for a decent GPU, but it can't be a tower, because that wouldn't fit on the shelf. The Grandia GD08B is the nicest looking of the options. Will the included fans be enough?
PSU:
I've been recommended the Seasonic G 380, or the SSR-450RM. I'm leaning towards the SSR-450RM for the modular cables for reduced clutter.
CPU:
Keeping it simple, Intel i3-3220 Ivy Bridge. The benchmarks I've seen tell me that games won't benefit much from an upgrade to an i5. But what about the cooler? Is there any chance of the stock cooler being good enough? If I gave it a test go, and then decided later it was too loud, would replacing it later be a horrible nuisance?
GPU:
Geforce GTX 650 Ti. nVidia because it's the industry standard for 3D gaming, and is TV compatible with the 3DTV Play software. Anything better than the 650 Ti would cost disproportionately more. Any reason not to go with 2GB over 1GB? The price difference isn't huge. Any manufacturers I should favor?
Motherboard:
Looking at the Gigabyte GA-H77N. The H77 chipset seems adequate, and the integrated wifi and Bluetooth will be nice.
Memory:
G.SKILL Ripjaws DDR3 1600 8GB (2). Didn't put much thought into this, just went with what gets good ratings at Newegg.
SSD:
Intel 330, 120GB. The OS and the occasional PC game will go on it.
HDD:
No clue. 500GB would be plenty of space, but aside from that, I don't know what other properties I should be looking for in a secondary HDD.
ODD:
Considering skipping this. I have a PS3 already. Adding a Blu-Ray drive would be really nice and nearly eliminate the need for my PS3, but if I can get superior airflow in the HTPC without one, then maybe it would be better to keep using the PS3 for that.
OS:
Windows 7 Home Premium. Not ready to be an early adopter of Windows 8.